Soviet Era Sherlock Holmes

Between BBC’s Sherlock, Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes films and the new American adaptation Elementary, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous character is getting a lot of attention. But, many ardent Holmes fans say that the best moving picture adaptations of the stories were made two decades ago by Russian production company Lenfilm.

Five movies were produced between 1979 and 1986, and shown on television in 11 episodes. The films are especially loyal to the books, to the delight of 221b fans. Each movie contains a number of the short stories woven together. For instance, the first film, Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson, includes the stories The Adventure of the Speckled Band and A Study in Scarlet with a scene from The Sign of Four at the beginning of the second part.

The series is praised for its high production values, and the accomplishment of loyally reproducing Victorian London in Soviet Era Russia. While the buildings in outdoor scenes are often more ornate and Eastern looking that what you would have seen in London, many fans feel that this gives the series a unique and charming touch.

While many fans complain that the 5 film series is just not enough, there is reason to take hope. Sherlock Holmes is expected to return to Russian TV screens soon; a new series was announced in 2009, and filming was completed in May of 2012.

The entire Lenfilm series is available with subtitles on DVD. What a pleasurable way to brush up on your Russian!